This morning we had intended to visit Kilmainham Gaol,
but we were tired and glad to take our time sleeping in preparing for our
afternoon flight. The hotel had luggage scales, which we used to balance
the weight in our checked luggage, ending up a tenth of a kilogram less
than the 23 killogram (50.7 pound) limit in both bags.

We had breakfast in the hotel for the first time. It was
another "full Irish breakfast" buffet, but much larger and with much nicer
than the one in Galway. I really loved the "French mustard" and realized
that I had never had mustard during previous trips to western Europe. At
first I thought it was hot from horseradish, but I finally concluded that
it was just the actual mustard. Yum!

Our flight with Air France was uneventful, though very
cramped. The problem wasn't leg room, but the shoulders and hips, There
were six seats across in a British Aerospace Avro 146-RJ85 which would
seat only 5 across in the US.

Our flight landed at London City Airport, which is only
about a mile from the ExCeL Center where the World Science Fiction Convention
was being held. The cabbie's face fell when we gave him the address and
he never spoke to us during the ride or dropping us off at the Aloft
Hotel.

All of Loncon 3 took place in the enormous (1/3 mile long)
ExCel Center. The attendee lodging was scattered across many hotels and
other parts of the city, but we were able to get into the Aloft, the closest
hotel to the convention center and on the end of the building where WorldCon
took place.

Our room at the Aloft Hotel

ExCeL London Exhibition and Convention Centre

Most UK science fiction conventions are a little different
from the US. One of the most visible differences is that there tends not
to be room parties or a hospitality suite. Instead they have a cash bar
with a wide selection of beers on tap.

Loncon 3 compromised with a large space in the
convention center which was called the "Fan Village." They added some character
to the space by putting up tents which did double duty. They housed the
tables where fan groups and the convention bids maintained promotional
tables during the day and hosted their parties in the evenings. The space
also had a snack stand, a long bar with beer, cider & liquor, and some
activity tents. The Exhibits Hall, which also housed the "Dealers Zone"
and art show, was under the same ceiling, but up one level to the west.

This year's site selection was between Kansas City and
a nearly last minute bid from Beijing, China.

Kansas City's double sized tent was on the edge of the
"Green," near the center of the village. The Green was used for various
activities from armed combat to Quidditch to Tai Chi. Most panels were
on a third level above the village, and big events like the Hugo Awards
were across the way.

Fan Village below, Exhibits Hall above

All food and beverages for the parties had to be purchased
through the convention center's caterers, which made things expensive and
the parties were running out of supplies by midnight. Kansas City primarily
provided BBQ. The bid had located a Kansas City style BBQ restaurant in
London and arranged those meats through the caterers. A variety of sauces
from KC had been brought from the US. The meat was actually pretty good.
The evening line waiting for the BBQ often stretched 1/2 way across the
Green.

The competing Chinese bid for 2016 consisted of several
young people who were thrilled to be at their first convention. They maintained
a table part time and had basically nothing to serve at the "party" which
they hosted one night. They say they will bid for future years until they
win and the KC people tried to encourage them and help them understand
the procedures.

Linda and I are both involved with the Kansas City
WorldCon bid and Saturday evening we gathered with the other committee
members as the votes were counted and plans started to be made.

Kansas City won the right to host the 2016 convention
with 90% of the vote. Midamericon II will be August 17-21, 2016. We
went with our friends to the nearby Fox Connaught Pub for a victory celebration.

Jeff Orth serving BBQ at the Kansas City in 2016 bid tent

The Kansas City bid committe receiving the voting results. We won!

Fox Connaught Hotel & Pub

The big events were in the evenings. Thursday evening
was the Retro Hugo Awards. The World Science Fiction Convention
has been taking place since 1939, but the Hugo Awards were not introduced
until the 1950s and skipped a couple of years even then. If a current WorldCon
is the 50th, 75th or 100th year since a year in which there was a WorldCon
which did not give out the award, they may vote on and present awards that
might have been given that year.

The first WorldCon was hosted in NYC in 1939, so this
year's convention gave awards for the best works from 1938. The awards
were preceded by the awarding of the First Fandom Awards, Big Heart Award,
and a Special Committee Award.

The Retro Hugo Awards ceremonies tend to be more creative
than the current year ceremonies and this one did not disappoint. The ceremony
was part of a "radio" broadcast which had an orchestra and some presenters
in period clothing. It opened with the orchestra accompanied by co-host,
Mary Robinette Kowal singing the song "Retro Hugos," to the tune of "Anything
Goes." Kowal had an effective period look, but the only words we could
make out were the repeated "Retro Hugos."

The radio broadcast was sponsored by "Cold Be Gone" which
was guaranteed to deal with all your con-crud needs!

The awards program was repeatedly interrupted with news
reports that alien invaders (much like those who landed in New Jersey during
a radio show in 1938) had landed in London and were approaching the Docklands
and our convention center. It was nicely done, and concluded near the end
of the ceremony when we were told that the aliens had succumbed to con-crud
just outside the convention center.

My dear friend, the late Wilson Tucker, was nominated
for one of the retro Hugo Awards and if he had won, I would have accepted
for him.

Friday night's big event was a performance of the Worldcon
Philharmonic Orchestra which had been assembled with 86 musicians from
the London Symphony, Royal Philharmonic, and London Philharmonic Orchestras.
The concert included music from Holst's The Planets, Dvorak's 'Song to
the Moon', Stravinsky's Firebird Suite, Shimomura's Kingdom Hearts soundtrack,
and John Williams' Star Wars Suite. We attended only part of if, but it
was very good and I was gratified to see the auditorium was packed. The
evening also had the Chesley Awards and following reception which were
presented by the Association of Science Fiction & Fantasy Artists.